Press Release
March 13, 2023

SPARK Microsystems Announces CDN$48 Million Financing Led by Idealist Capital

New funding will drive mass market commercialization for ultra-energy efficient, UWB-based wireless electronic devices and sensors

Montreal, Canada, March 13, 2023 – SPARK Microsystems, a Montreal-based fabless semiconductor company specializing in next-generation ultra-wideband (UWB) wireless communications, today announced the closing of CDN$34 million Series B financing, with an additional CDN$14 million available subject to meeting operational milestones. Led by Idealist Capital, a prominent investment firm focused on the energy transition and decarbonization, the round includes existing investors Cycle Capital, Economic Development Canada (EDC), Real Ventures, and ND Capital.

This round of investment extends the company’s resources to deliver on its mission to transcend the performance, power, and sustainability limitations of legacy short-range wireless platforms. Proceeds will be used to accelerate customer acquisition and partner engagements, as well as product development for major markets spanning mobile electronic devices and smart sensors. SPARK’s ultra-low power, low latency, high data rate wireless UWB transceivers enable new levels of functionality and performance with no compromises for a broad range of consumer, industrial, IoT, and automotive products.

“With strong backing from Idealist Capital and existing investors, SPARK Microsystems is well positioned to execute on its vision of creating high-performance wireless networks for a broad range of products with significantly longer battery lifecycles and reduced waste for a more sustainable, environmentally friendly future,” said Fares Mubarak, CEO, SPARK Microsystems. “This new financing marks a pivotal milestone in the mass market commercialization of SPARK’s UWB technology, equipping us to meet massive demand for breakthrough performance in short-range wireless connectivity.”

“Idealist Capital embraces investment opportunities in innovators like SPARK Microsystems who developed a breakthrough technology to enable greener, energy efficient electronic devices without compromise in performance,” said Steeve Robitaille, Co-Managing Partner, Idealist Capital. “We are thrilled to support SPARK for its future growth. SPARK’s UWB technology holds tremendous promise for battery-less, wireless devices powered by energy harvesting technologies.”

“We’re pleased to see a new investor join the company and share our belief that Spark’s cutting-edge technology can enable a significant energy consumption reduction in a wide range of applications. This financing will help accelerate the deployment of Spark’s next-generation ultra-wideband technology on a global scale,” said Andrée-Lise Méthot, Founder and Managing Partner at Cycle Capital. “We look forward to contributing to SPARK Microsystems’ growth as we are convinced the team has developed an industry leading product that will enable electronic devices to be more energy efficient.”

SPARK Microsystems’ UWB short-range wireless technology dramatically reduces energy consumption for connected devices. Its performance attributes are essential for enabling the next generation of wireless connected mobile devices and sensors optimized for high energy efficiency, driving a significant reduction in battery usage and replacement. Among its recent milestones, SPARK has expanded its collaboration with industry standards organizations (IEEE, UWB Alliance, FiRaTM Consortium) and built a global sales and distribution network while winning accolades and investments from Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC) for improving energy efficiency in wireless devices. SPARK transceivers – complemented with SDKs and reference designs – are designed into customers’ next-generation products in consumer and IoT sensor markets, with strategic engagements in progress with tier-one technology suppliers.

About SPARK Microsystems

SPARK Microsystems is building next generation short-range wireless communication devices. SPARK UWB provides high data rate and very low latency wireless communication links at an ultra-low power profile, making it ideal for personal area networks (PANs) used in mobile, consumer and IoT-connected products. Leveraging patented technologies, SPARK Microsystems strives to minimize and ultimately eliminate wires and batteries from a wide range of applications. For more information, please visit sparkmicro.com.

About Idealist Capital

Idealist Capital is an investment firm focused on accelerating the energy transition by providing growth capital to entrepreneurs across North America, with a primary focus on the Canadian market. Idealist Capital supports businesses whose activities enable positive climate impact across one of three themes – (i) the decarbonization of power supply, (ii) the electrification of transportation, and (iii) the decarbonization of industrials and circular economy. The Firm has a dual mandate to achieve excellent risk-adjusted returns while scaling solutions which are beneficial to the climate. Idealist Capital underwrites its carbon impact and integrates critical non-financial KPIs in its asset management process to build sustainable platforms. To learn more about Idealist Capital, visit idealist.capital.

About Cycle Capital

Cycle Capital is a leading private ClimateTech venture capital investment platform with offices in North America, Europe and Asia. Cycle Capital invests in growing and commercializing innovative climatetech companies that develop solutions to contribute towards climate change mitigation by enabling a net-zero transition, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and optimizing resources and processes. Cycle Capital is the founder of Cycle Momentum Accelerator + Innovation Engine.

About Silicon Catalyst

Silicon Catalyst is the world’s only incubator focused exclusively on accelerating semiconductor solutions, built on a comprehensive coalition of in-kind and strategic partners to dramatically reduce the cost and complexity of development. More than 800 startup companies worldwide have engaged with Silicon Catalyst and the company has admitted 90 exciting companies. With a world-class network of mentors to advise startups, Silicon Catalyst is helping new semiconductor companies address the challenges in moving from idea to realization. The incubator/accelerator supplies startups with access to design tools, silicon devices, networking, and a path to funding, banking and marketing acumen to successfully launch and grow their companies’ novel technology solutions. Over the past seven plus years, the Silicon Catalyst model has proven to dramatically accelerate a startup’s trajectory while at the same time de-risking the equation for investors. Silicon Catalyst has been named the Semiconductor Review’s 2021 Top-10 Solutions Company award winner. More information is available at www.siliconcatalyst.com and www.siliconcatalystangels.com